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Creative Non-Fiction Writing

ENGL 135.302
instructor(s):
T 1:30-4:30

In this workshop-style class you will complete six projects in three categories: memoir, profile, and collage. You will visit each category twice. In your first attempt you will write a conventional, albeit creative, nonfiction essay; in the second attempt you will experiment by pushing the boundaries of the form. For example, your first collage project will be a narrative collage written after reading and discussing a wide variety of narrative collages by established and emerging writers. In your second collage project you will revisit your original material using text with any combination of other media you choose. You might experiment with hypertext, paper collage, photography ‹ the only limit is your imagination.

In our workshop we will address technical issues in prose writing, such as narrative and thematic tension, manipulation of transitions, and point-of-view. Throughout the semester, we will discuss the ethics of writing nonfiction and the uncertain boundary between fiction and creative nonfiction.

Class participation, oral and written, is as important as your writing. In class, and over the email listserv, we will discuss your projects-in-progress as well as your finished work. You will be asked to duplicate your own work for class critique and to give thoughtful, constructive feedback on the work of your fellow student writers.

fulfills requirements